Resident Evil 7 VR Mode Includes Headtracking

The PlayStation VR-exclusive virtual reality feature in Resident Evil 7 includes headtracking, which allows players to control the camera and peak around corners.

During the game’s E3 2016 reveal trailer at Sony’s press conference this past summer, virtual reality was pushed as a major component of the Resident Evil VII experience. In the months since, virtual reality has seemed more like an afterthought for Capcom, with neither the Beginning Hour demo nor the Twilight Version update supporting the feature. This lack of focus on Resident Evil VII‘s virtual reality may give the impression that it will feel tacked-on and lazy, but on the contrary, Capcom appears to be giving the feature proper attention.

Based on hands-on sessions with the game from various outlets at Tokyo Game Show 2016 in September, and a more recent event that took place in Japan, it’s being reported that Resident Evil VII‘s virtual reality has more depth than it seems to on the surface. For example, when playing Resident Evil VII in virtual reality (a feature that is exclusive to PlayStation VR, by the way), headtracking will allow players to immerse themselves in the game even further.

It’s been noted in the past that Resident Evil VII‘s use of the PlayStation VR headset will allow players to control the in-game camera through headtracking, but the extent of it has gone ignored by many. Apparently, Resident Evil VII will use headtracking to allow players to do things like peek around corners when they’re hiding from enemies, which could make the game even scarier if Capcom is able to implement it effectively.

Even though Capcom appears to be making a genuine effort when it comes to adding virtual reality to Resident Evil VII, there are some limitations to the hardware that should be considered. Anyone that has used Sony’s virtual reality headset can attest that the image quality is simply not as sharp as the traditional method of playing a game on a TV, so Resident Evil VII VR users will be sacrificing graphics if they plan on playing through the whole game with the headset on.

However, some may feel as though the poorer image quality is a worthy trade for the level of immersion that VR could potentially provide Resident Evil VII players. For those wondering just how immersive Resident Evil can be in VR, they can try out the Kitchen demo – a tech demo that is available for all PlayStation VR owners to try for free.

The downside to the Kitchen demo is that it doesn’t allow for much movement, and fails to really show off the headtracking features. Considering these drawbacks, hopefully the December demo releasing for Resident Evil VII sports virtual reality so that fans have a better idea of how it will enhance the experience.

Resident Evil VII will be available on January 24th, 2017 for PC, PS4, and Xbox One.